Western Men's Soccer Downs Loyola-Chicago 1-0

Kouassi's goal helps Leathernecks defeat Ramblers in preseason finale.

MACOMB, Ill. - Western Illinois men's soccer defeated Loyola-Chicago 1-0 in their final exhibition game on Saturday (Aug. 23). The Leathernecks winner came from Armel Kouassi in the 52nd minute off of a Mario Alvarez cross touched by Ben Fiddes.

"We survived a very strong opening by Loyola. The water break was the best play of the first half for us," said head coach Eric Johnson. "The one time we made four passes, Diego had a chance to score and that was the only four pass sequence of the first half; but we defended and they didn't take advantage."

In the first half Loyola outshot the Purple and Gold four to three while the Leathernecks placed one on goal. In the second half, Western turned around and ran off ten shots including Kouassi's gamewinner.

"I thought the rest of the game was pretty even and maybe some better soccer from us," said Johnson. "We got a lot of guys in the game and got to see a lot from them. We also defended well and got another shutout. If we could just get rid of the first 25 minutes and play smarter and better earlier, we will be good to go. It was a much better game than our match against Northern."

Western had five players each taking two shots including, Kyle Walton, Mario Alvarez, Diego Lopez, Armel Kouassi, and Jacob Bevan.

Leatherneck goalkeeper Yves Dietrich was only forced to make one save in his second shutout of the preseason.

With the preseason completed, the Purple and Gold will take a week to prepare for the regular season opener against UNLV on Friday, Aug. 29 at the Hotels at Grand Prairie Classic hosted by Bradley in Peoria, Ill.

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Players Mentioned

#25 Ben Fiddes: MF; 6' 0"; Sophomore; Peoria Notre Dame

#28 Armel Kouassi: F; 5' 11"; Freshman; Homewood-Flossmoor

#1 Yves Dietrich: GK; 6' 1"; Senior; UW-Whitewater

#13 Diego Lopez: F/MF; 5' 6"; Sophomore; Warsaw Community

#10 Mario Alvarez: MF; 5' 10"; Senior; Aurora West

#14 Jacob Bevan: F; 6' 2"; Sophomore; Oak Park River Forest

#5 Kyle Walton: D; 6' 1"; Junior; St. Marguerite d'Youville / Lincoln College

Players Mentioned

#25 Ben Fiddes
: 6' 0"; Sophomore; Peoria Notre Dame
: MF

#28 Armel Kouassi
: 5' 11"; Freshman; Homewood-Flossmoor
: F

#1 Yves Dietrich
: 6' 1"; Senior; UW-Whitewater
: GK

#13 Diego Lopez
: 5' 6"; Sophomore; Warsaw Community
: F/MF

#10 Mario Alvarez
: 5' 10"; Senior; Aurora West
: MF

#14 Jacob Bevan
: 6' 2"; Sophomore; Oak Park River Forest
: F

#5 Kyle Walton
: 6' 1"; Junior; St. Marguerite d'Youville / Lincoln College
: D